In Search of Seafood: Part 1

Looking for great seafood? Me too. Having lived so close to the beautiful, California coast throughout my life, I have been fortunate to eat some incredible seafood in my home state. For that reason, and because I am frequently asked for quality, seafood, restaurant suggestions, I am starting this "In Search of Seafood" series.

There are lots of great restaurants, featuring a variety of cuisines to come, but I have decided to launch this series with a stand out, sushi spot that I recently visited. Moreover, I am choosing to start with sushi because, in my opinion, it is seafood in its purest form.

Omakase by Gino (OmG)

Omakase by Gino, otherwise known as OmG, opened in late 2018. The restaurant features a delectable omakase (chef's choice) menu that changes (approximately) every three to four weeks. The restaurant, located on Main Street, in Santa Ana, California, seats an intimate 10 guests. Reservations are hard to come by, so book early. It is worth the wait.

The dining experience at OmG is very personal and the food is exquisite. Each guest gets a front row seat, to embark on the ultimate, Japanese food tour with Gino, the chef and owner of OmG.

Gino

With that, let me introduce Gino. Gino is the genius behind OmG. With the exception of a few servers, he single handedly runs this restaurant, preparing every magnificent dish with passion and precision. Gino constructs every dish from scratch and has fresh fish flown in daily from Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo, Japan. In my book, that is the level of commitment, dedication and excellence that a master shows to, and for, his craft. Gino is involved in every aspect of the restaurant, including calling guests to confirm their reservation. In addition to that, ...

... Gino sears.

Gino slices.

Gino sharpens his knives and makes ready all the plates and cutlery for dinner service.

And finally, Gino meticulously plates his masterpieces. The dish featured above is how we inaugurated our meal.

Ikura Salmon Roe

Gino's first dish featured Ikura salmon roe topped with gold leaf. The roe was wrapped in a thin ribbon of Asian pear and placed atop yuzu-infused, whipped cream.

Oyster 

The oyster was served with white sturgeon caviar, as well as a green chili and white wine foam.

Seared King Yellowtail

The third course of seared yellowtail, was served with a white wine and rice vinegar dashi jelly. I have never had anything similar to this jelly before. It maintained beautiful structure for presentation on the plate, but melted as soon as it entered my mouth. To elevate the dish further, shiso leaf flowers were added as garnish.

Black Cod

For our fourth dish, black cod was slow-cooked with garlic and olive oil. The fish was then topped with cherry tomatoes, lemon juice and yuzu foam. To finish his vision, Gino added water pepper leaf, a garnish I had never before tasted.

Chawanmushi

Chawanmushi is a classic, savory, steamed custard that is a Japanese speciality. The custard is steamed in a cup to provide a smooth and silky texture. Here, Gino placed the steamed custard in a smoked, king crab broth.

To that he added succulent chunks of king crab legs. All the elements combined for a sumptuous bite.

Sashimi Course

Clockwise from top: Kelp-wrapped flounder, sea bream, young kanpachi and otoro.

Every piece of fish screamed freshness. To accompany each bite, the plate included both fresh wasabi and wasabi salt ...

... as well as a small bowl of soy sauce.

Did I mention that all the soy sauce is made by Gino?

Udon 

Our next course was an udon dish served with fresh uni and shaved black truffle. This was a very decadent course due to the creamy uni and generous helping of truffles. The noodles were cooked perfectly, resulting in a springy texture that still had some bite.

Black Perch

The next few courses consisted of nigiri. First on the list was a black sea perch.

The perch was smoked in cedar wood ever so slightly. To accomplish this fine balance, Gino torched a plank of cedar, covered the smoked portion of the wood with a glass case to capture the smoke, and then took the smoke-filled glass cover, covered the fish with it, and let the perch luxuriate in the smoke for several minutes.

Golden Fin Sea Bream

The nigiri feast continued with this golden fin sea bream.

Mackerel Tuna

And next was my favorite nigiri of the evening -- the mackerel tuna. The name is a bit confusing; this is actually a type of tuna, with skin that looks like mackerel. Gino told us that this fish is so delectable that it has earned the nickname "every bite toro." The season for mackerel tuna is less than two weeks, and during this season, OmG serves it only once a week. I was fortunate enough to be at the restaurant on one such night.

Bluefin Tuna

This blue fin tuna was aged 12 days and then marinated in sake and soy for 15 minutes before combining it with the sushi rice.

Hamachi

The freshness of the hamachi was evident and the gorgeous taste lingered in my mouth, long after I finished eating it.

Aji

Aji is a horse mackerel. This fish was both briny and soft in flavor.

Dashi

Interrupting the nigiri sequence to get our palates prepared for the next set of more buttery and rich fish, was this dashi made of shitake mushroom and kombu, finished with fish, scallion and lemon.

Otoro 

Otoro gets its name from the sentiment, "o, how I love toro." Ok, that isn't true at all, but that's how I feel about otoro. Otoro is the fattiest and most flavorful part of blue fin tuna - the under belly of the fish. Gino served this already decadent cut with osetra caviar, which elevated it in unspeakable ways.

Hokkaido Scallop and Uni Hand Roll

Next, Gino slightly torched some sweet, Hokkaido scallop, added some creamy uni, placed it in some crunchy seaweed with sushi rice, and handed it to us. Wow, this was a phenomenal hand roll!

Tamago 

Tamago is technically a Japanese omelet. Though it sounds perfunctory, it is actually very difficult to perfect because it is constructed with many layers of egg. When prepared correctly, it has a light and spongy consistency that I haven't found in any other cuisine's omelet preparation. Gino hoisted this tamago to another level by adding sea bream and tiger shrimp, which imparted both salty and savory elements to balance the sweetness of the egg.

Panna Cotta

Our last course was a Japanese, panna cotta. This is only the second Japanese panna cotta I have tried (the first here) and I think I like it as much, if not more, than its Italian counterpart. Gino added grapes and gooseberry, which brought some acid balance to the creamy, dessert. He also added some gold leaf for flourish.

With that dessert, we concluded our meal and can I say, "OmG?!" Omakase by Gino is a must try if you are in Southern California. Stay tuned for my next seafood, restaurant selections including exciting and delicious spots in Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego and San Francisco.